The usefulness of modified distress thermometer in screening adolescents with COVID‐19 for psychological distress: A prospective study

Abstract

Background Children and adolescents are more vulnerable than other age groups to the psychosocial effects of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID‐19) pandemic. The modified distress thermometer (m‐DT) was recently utilized for measuring the prevalence of psychological distress among adult COVID‐19 patients. In the current study, we aimed to test the utilization of this m‐DT in screening adolescent patients with COVID‐19 for psychological distress. Methods Egyptian adolescent subjects with suspected or confirmed cases of COVID‐19 at a University Hospital were enrolled. Binary logistic regression tests were conducted to explore the association between the m‐DT cutoff scores of 4 and the clinical variables. Results A total of 48% (87/182) of the study subjects experienced significant (m‐DT score ≥4) COVID‐19‐related distress. There were substantial differences between those with and without considerable distress regarding the length of quarantine, underlying medical disorders, and the presence of chronic respiratory conditions. Length of quarantine time, chronic respiratory disease, worry, and fever were independent factors associated with significant distress in COVID‐19 adolescent patients. Conclusions Almost half of the enrolled Egyptian adolescents with COVID‐19 experienced significant psychological distress. The m‐DT was helpful, as the current study had identified length of quarantine time, presence of chronic respiratory disease, worry, and fever as independent factors associated with significant distress in COVID‐19 adolescents. Further studies are needed.

Utility and Implementation of the Distress Thermometer for Cancer Patients: A Cross-Sectional Study From Saudi Arabia

“…The current study's findings support previously published reports on Saudi Arabian cancer patients [ 4 , 13 , 14 ] and confirm the utility of DT for screening cancer patients for ED [ 2 , 3 , 5 - 9 ]. Using the DT, we identified that 22% of our cancer patients had significant distress, which was significantly related only to the tumor site.…”

“…Overall, in the current study, we have identified that the critical stress determinants are the prime determinants of neurological health and cognitive functioning in cancer patients. The early evaluation of the essential stress levels in those patients can help identify the measures that can improve psychological well-being and mental health [8][9][10].…”

“…Thus, the quality of life of cancer patients can be significantly affected in various ways when they experience unpleasant therapy side effects and abnormal levels of physical symptom burden [3][4][5]. Thus, screening cancer patients for any distress is thought to be an effective way to provide them with timely initiated support, especially those who have priority for that [6][7][8][9]. Therefore, it is unsurprising that several international regulatory organizations have strongly recommended "routine" screening and proper distress management.…”